Principal Financial Group Inc. Acquires 3,927 Shares of Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW)

Principal Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:LW) by 2.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 165,953 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock after buying an additional 3,927 shares during the period. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.11% of Lamb Weston worth $10,744,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in LW. EntryPoint Capital LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Crewe Advisors LLC grew its stake in Lamb Weston by 357.5% during the second quarter. Crewe Advisors LLC now owns 334 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 261 shares in the last quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC increased its holdings in Lamb Weston by 135.8% in the 2nd quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 382 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $32,000 after buying an additional 220 shares during the period. City State Bank raised its position in shares of Lamb Weston by 56.2% in the 3rd quarter. City State Bank now owns 417 shares of the specialty retailer’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 150 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Family Firm Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Lamb Weston during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $36,000. Institutional investors own 89.56% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages have weighed in on LW. Barclays raised their target price on Lamb Weston from $70.00 to $74.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Friday, October 4th. TD Cowen lifted their target price on Lamb Weston from $61.00 to $65.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, September 24th. Citigroup increased their target price on shares of Lamb Weston from $76.00 to $90.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, October 22nd. The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their price target on shares of Lamb Weston from $132.00 to $78.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, July 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. reissued a “neutral” rating and issued a $68.00 price objective (up previously from $63.00) on shares of Lamb Weston in a research note on Monday, October 7th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, Lamb Weston has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $82.22.

Lamb Weston Stock Down 6.1 %

Shares of NYSE:LW opened at $75.47 on Monday. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $71.80 and a 200 day simple moving average of $74.21. Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. has a 12-month low of $52.99 and a 12-month high of $111.88. The firm has a market cap of $10.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 17.72, a P/E/G ratio of 1.35 and a beta of 0.72. The company has a quick ratio of 0.54, a current ratio of 1.19 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87.

Lamb Weston (NYSE:LW) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, October 1st. The specialty retailer reported $0.73 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.72 by $0.01. Lamb Weston had a return on equity of 34.33% and a net margin of 9.57%. The firm had revenue of $1.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $1.55 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.63 EPS. The business’s revenue was down .7% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts predict that Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. will post 4.26 earnings per share for the current year.

Lamb Weston Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, November 29th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 1st will be given a $0.36 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 1st. This represents a $1.44 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.91%. Lamb Weston’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 33.80%.

Lamb Weston Profile

Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc produces, distributes, and markets frozen potato products worldwide. The company operates through four segments: Global, Foodservice, Retail, and Other. It offers frozen potatoes, commercial ingredients, and appetizers under the Lamb Weston brand, as well as under various customer labels.